Chapter 40: Be an Honest Person

Facing Zhu Houzhao’s slightly displeased expression, Fang Jifan calmly took out a bundle and placed it on the desk in front of Zhu Houzhao.

He slowly opened it, and one by one, chess pieces fell out.

“What is this?” Zhu Houzhao’s anger came and went quickly. At this moment, he curiously picked up a piece and examined it closely. He saw the bright red words “Commander” written on it.

Fang Jifan said confidently, “This is military chess. You arrange your troops and have the pieces fight each other on the board. Look, Your Highness, here we have the Commander, the Generals, the Guerrilla Commanders, the Deputy Generals, as well as Qian Hu, Bai Hu, Zongqi, Xiaoqi, and soldiers. Oh, and here are the bombs… Come, let me teach you how to play.”

Fang Jifan knew that historically, after Zhu Houzhao ascended the throne, he had appointed himself as the Commander due to his love for military affairs. So, when he heard about arranging troops on a chessboard, how could he not be deeply interested?

What Fang Jifan had made was indeed military chess, but he replaced the commander with the Commander, and the squad leader, platoon leader, company leader, and battalion leader with Xiaoqi, Zongqi, Bai Hu, and Qian Hu. The rules of this military chess were simple, making it very suitable for someone like Zhu Houzhao, who had a simple mind, and it simulated military formations.

Fang Jifan roughly explained the rules, and Zhu Houzhao nodded eagerly like a chicken pecking rice. Then he leaned over the desk and said, “Come on, come on. This Palace has studied military manuals thoroughly. Now I’ll show you what I can do.”

So, Fang Jifan and he started playing chess. As expected, Zhu Houzhao forgot about riding horses and became increasingly fascinated by the military chess.

They played until it got dark, only having some tea and snacks sent over at noon to make do. The more they played, the more enjoyable it became. Especially since Zhu Houzhao was being thoroughly beaten by Fang Jifan the whole time, which made him rack his brains and show his unwillingness to admit defeat. In a daze, the sun outside the hall set, and Liu Jin lit the lamps in the hall.

Fang Jifan won this round again. He pushed the chess pieces aside and showed a bit of tiredness. “Your Highness, it’s getting late. I need to finish my duties.”

There was no overtime pay, so of course, he had to leave as soon as his duties were over.

But Zhu Houzhao said, “No, no. Let’s play another round. This Palace has thought of a method. Come on, come on.”

Fang Jifan felt overwhelmed. He couldn’t keep playing this game forever. So, he firmly refused, saying, “Let’s talk about it tomorrow, Your Highness. I take my leave.”

In such matters, one must have principles. Otherwise, given Zhu Houzhao’s temperament, he probably wouldn’t be able to leave today.

The next morning, Fang Jifan felt refreshed and went to the Eastern Palace again. As soon as he arrived at the entrance of the House of the Crown Prince, a eunuch was eagerly waiting. “Chief Fang, you’ve finally arrived. His Highness is waiting anxiously. Hurry, hurry…”

Fang Jifan followed him inside to a side hall, where he saw Zhu Houzhao scolding Liu Jin angrily. “If you don’t know how to play, get lost!”

In front of him and Liu Jin was the same set of military chess from the previous day. Liu Jin stepped aside with a pitiful expression, and Zhu Houzhao smiled and waved at Fang Jifan. “You’re here! Quick, quick! This Palace has finally thought of a way to deal with you!”

But Liu Jin cautiously reminded him, “Your Highness, it’s getting late. It’s time to go to the Left Chunfang to study. Otherwise, Yang Shidu…”

Zhu Houzhao said impatiently, “Not going, not going. Just say This Palace is sick.”

Fang Jifan shook his head inwardly. This guy is so unreliable. Why does it feel like he’s trying to drag me down? Does he expect me to play chess with him all day?

Besides, the person in front of me is the future Emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty. The long-term meal ticket for the Fang Family was granted by your Zhu family. If your Zhu family is ruined by you, Zhu Houzhao, our Fang Family will be finished too.

This is called “when one prospers, all prosper; when one fails, all fail.”

No matter what, he couldn’t let things deteriorate like this. Fang Jifan was very clear about this.

Fang Jifan narrowed his eyes, seemingly plotting something. “Forget it, let’s not play anymore.”

“…” Zhu Houzhao stared at Fang Jifan in astonishment.

“I won’t play chess anymore from now on,” Fang Jifan firmly refused. “I have duties to attend to.”

Zhu Houzhao grew anxious. “What do you mean? Are you not being loyal?”

Fang Jifan thought to himself, the whole world sees me as a wasteful son, but I, Fang Jifan, am a young man with ambitions. Do you really think I’m like you?

In an instant, an idea seemed to pop into Fang Jifan’s mind. Once he had made up his mind, he said, “Your Highness, how about we play a game?”

“A game?” Zhu Houzhao instantly perked up. When it came to games, Zhu Houzhao was almost always interested.

Fang Jifan said, “Just playing chess is boring. There should be a prize. If I lose, I’ll give you three hundred taels of silver per game. How about that?”

“Good,” Zhu Houzhao agreed directly, his eyes even lighting up. Yes, playing chess should have a prize. “It’s settled. If This Palace loses, I’ll give you three hundred taels of silver too.”

But Fang Jifan arrogantly looked up at the sky. “Your Highness, do I look like someone who needs three hundred taels of silver?”

Zhu Houzhao scratched his head and smiled bitterly. “Then if This Palace loses, I’ll…”

“Then study. If you lose one game, memorize one article,” Fang Jifan said decisively.

Zhu Houzhao hesitated, seeming somewhat unwilling.

But Fang Jifan narrowed his eyes and casually played his trump card. “Your Highness, are you afraid to try?”

Zhu Houzhao immediately became angry. “Who said I’m afraid?”

Clearly, Zhu Houzhao didn’t notice the triumphant glint that flashed in Fang Jifan’s eyes!

Now, Fang Jifan was gradually starting to enjoy his duty life. Every morning, he would get up and rush to the House of the Crown Prince. Sometimes, Zhu Houzhao had to go to the Left Chunfang to study, but he always seemed lazy. Occasionally, he would pretend to be sick. The rest of the time, he almost always spent with Fang Jifan, playing chess and studying.

Zhu Houzhao was a child who cared about face. Although such people could be unruly, at least they honored their bets. As long as he lost a game, he would obediently pick up a book and study. Sometimes, even Fang Jifan had to admit that the Zhu family’s genes were actually quite good. Zhu Houzhao’s memory was remarkably sharp. When Zhu Houzhao was eager to continue playing chess to win back a game, his memory was astonishing. When he put his mind to it, even Fang Jifan felt inferior.

…

Early one morning, Fang Jifan got up and was dressed by Xiaoxiangxiang. He was about to tease Xiaoxiangxiang as usual when Deng Jian said, “Young Lord, the Earl has instructed that you go to your duties a little later today.”

“Why?” Fang Jifan said grumpily.

Deng Jian said, “Young Lord, the Earl… the Earl said that recently, you’ve been behaving so normally that it seems like you might be getting sick again. Young Lord, don’t worry. We just need to have the doctor in the residence check your pulse. Just a quick check.”

Was it because he had been acting normal that people became suspicious?

Fang Jifan said angrily, “This Young Lord is perfectly normal.”

As he spoke, he directly kicked Deng Jian in the buttocks. Who knew the kick would be so strong? Deng Jian fell to the ground.

Fang Jifan’s heart skipped a beat. He hadn’t meant to hurt him. He wanted to rush forward and check on Deng Jian’s injury, but after a moment’s thought, he held back and instead laughed loudly.

“You dog-like thing, so weak against a kick.”

Deng Jian rolled on the ground but quickly stood up, smiling apologetically. “Yes, yes. Young Lord kicked well, very well. Young Lord…” His eyes brimmed with tears again.

Fang Jinfan looked impatient. “What now?”

“Actually…” Deng Jian wiped his tears. “Actually, I’ve always known that Young Lord’s Brain Illness is completely cured. Even kicking my butt was so smooth and effortless, not clumsy like before. I’m truly happy from the bottom of my heart.”

“…”

Fang Jifan stared at Deng Jian for a long time, then hit Deng Jian’s head with a fan. “Crazy!”

Then he started walking away. “I’m going to my duties. Tell that dog doctor to get lost.”

But as soon as he reached the door, he almost bumped into Fang Jinglong, who was about to come in. Fang Jinglong quickly supported Fang Jifan. “My son, did I bump into you? Be careful, don’t get hurt. Wait, don’t go yet. Doctor Sun is coming. He’ll just check your pulse, haha… It’s just a routine check.”

Fang Jifan, blocked by him, had no choice but to return to his room and sit down, acting carelessly. “Check what pulse? I hate that doctor as soon as I see him!”

Fang Jinglong just smiled and nodded. “Yes, hateful, hateful. Don’t get angry. This is for your own good, isn’t it?”

Then Fang Jinglong seemed to remember something. “Son, I heard that a few days ago, you withdrew five hundred thousand Treasure Notes from the accounts. That’s not a small amount—it’s fifty thousand taels of silver.”

“Mm,” Fang Jifan continued to play his role as the wasteful son and admitted it lightly.

Fang Jinglong rubbed his hands and said, “A grown son should spend some money. Besides, our family has a large estate. That… that… how much do you have left? What I mean is, carrying so much silver with you might not be safe. In the future, when you need silver, just withdraw it from the accounts directly. Why carry so much with you?”

“I spent it!” Fang Jifan looked at Fang Jinglong and spread his hands.

“Spent it?” Fang Jinglong’s eyes widened. “Fifty thousand taels of silver, just gone?”

Fang Jifan said, “Let me calculate. I gave Crown Prince some pocket money—thirty thousand taels. I also lost some playing chess with him, and…”

Fang Jinglong’s body trembled slightly. It felt like he had fallen into an ice cellar.

It had been hard for the Fang Family to build up some savings. He had been planning to use some more silver to buy more land, so he checked the household accounts excitedly every day. When he saw that Fang Jifan had taken such a large sum of silver, he had hoped to get it back today. Five hundred thousand Treasure Notes were fifty thousand taels of silver… Now, it was all gone, all given away.

Fang Jinglong’s sturdy figure suddenly seemed fragile. Two clear tears uncontrollably slid down the corners of his eyes. His face showed pain as he clutched his chest. “Wasteful… This is a wasteful son… My late father… Imperial Ancestors… I, Fang Jinglong… Fang Jinglong… let you down… Oh heavens…”

Seeing Fang Jinglong’s heart-wrenching wails, Fang Jifan knew things were going badly. He quickly turned and ran, disappearing in a flash.